Broward district explores school repurposing amid enrollment decline

MIRAMAR, Fla. – Broward County Public Schools leaders have been holding meetings to figure out how to deal with declining enrollment and to best use the county’s resources.

It’s an ongoing effort called “Redefining Our Schools.”

Fourteen schools are being analyzed for consideration, and a committee was adopted Tuesday to continue the process.

“The community gave us a lot of input,” Valerie Wanza, the district’s chief strategy and innovation officer, said.

At the board’s Oct. 8 meeting, some schools were listed as being considered for potential repurposing: Broward Estates Elementary, North Fork Elementary, Silver Lakes Elementary, Silver Shores Elementary, and Olsen Middle School.

Some are being assessed for potential grade reconfiguration, like turning an elementary school into a K-8 school.

Those schools are Coconut Creek Elementary, Hollywood Central Elementary, and Pines Middle School.

Board members said they received feedback that Coral Cove Elementary and Thurgood Marshall Elementary, which were on the list, should not be reconfigured.

Four schools are being considered for potential consolidation: Panther Run Elementary, Bennett Elementary, Palm Cove Elementary, and Miramar Elementary.

Wanza stressed that the process was just beginning and parents should have plenty of opportunities to bring up concerns.

“Have a conversation with your school principal because we work with the principals often,” she said. “And we want the community to know that they can reach out to us at the district office - they can always call their school board member.”


About the Author
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Janine Stanwood joined Local 10 News in February 2004 as an assignment editor. She is now a general assignment reporter. Before moving to South Florida from her Washington home, Janine was the senior legislative correspondent for a United States senator on Capitol Hill.

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